Westcon-Comstor ignites NZ innovation

As the New Zealand channel market grapples with the rising demand of data centre, networking and security solutions, distribution giant Westcon has united its two core offerings as it reacts to the changing face of innovation at a local level.

In a boost for Kiwi resellers, the new Westcon-Comstor brand in New Zealand merges two core offerings into one, Westcon Group and its dedicated Cisco shop, Comstor.

With the rebranding now official and live, partners stand to be the chief beneficiaries of the distributor’s growing services offering, as Westcon-Comstor spins global relationships and frameworks into locally created channel strategies.

“Our teams create unique programs and provide exceptional financial and technical support to accelerate the business of our partners.”

For Rosenberg, the brands unique point of difference lies in its ability to leverage “strong relationships” at every level of the Comstor organisation, enabling Kiwi partners - whether that be vendor or reseller - to receive support tailored to its needs.

“We provide expertise and experience at each stage of the sales process, including consultancy, design, implementation and support for single site through to multi-site and multi-national environments,” Rosenberg adds.

“Comstor also provides the services, support programs, training, and tools needed to make our customers more profitable and competitive.”

Underneath the rebranding, Rosenberg points to a deeper understanding of the local industry, a market crammed with digital disruption and new technologies flooding the market.

As New Zealand businesses seek new ways to digitally prosper, Rosenberg says Westcon-Comstor aims to focus its effort on its core competencies, built around helping local customers grow revenue streams across a range of verticals.

“One of the strengths of Comstor is the pre-sales support from a team of highly skilled experts,” Rosenberg explains.

“Access to these experts represents an invaluable resource with Comstor's services designed to complement our customers skills and resources.

“By taking advantage of our services can extend geographical coverage, support new products and services and develop internal knowledge and experience.”

But as Rosenberg explains, the Comstor point of difference delves deeper than its dedicated Cisco offerings.

“The offerings we have, the methodologies we bring to the market, and our EDGE program brings a unique opportunity for partners that are looking to grow with the Cisco business where we can help and add value to that,” he adds.

The Westcon-Comstor EDGE program is a partner development program the company created in conjunction with Cisco, with the distributor building on the brand’s official launch in the New Zealand market, in July earlier this year.

“What we have done exceptionally well in New Zealand is resource the business really well, gone to market successfully and our first few months of trading has been immensely successful for both us and Cisco,” he adds.

Market disruption

The distributor’s new focus, and market clarification, comes at a time when businesses in both New Zealand, and the world, must act rapidly to respond to fundamental changes in competitive challenges, customer demands and technology use models.

Instead, Rosenberg believes digital disruption at both a global and local level should be seen as an opportunity for partners, as the channel aims to capitalise on IT being back in vogue across enterprise.

Highlighted during the distributor’s data centre event in May, Adam Dodds, Research Manager for IT Services, IDC New Zealand claims that at present, 75 percent of New Zealand businesses believe they are underway with their digital transformation.

“That could be as simple as having a website but it doesn’t matter, it’s that sense of belief that makes it real,” said Dodds, when addressing a room full of vendors, resellers and service providers in Auckland.

“Subsequently this gives the channel the opportunity to talk to the wider organisation about what is possible.”

Such an opportunity has now arrived through the Westcon-Comstor offering, with New Zealand businesses not only “open to innovation”, but keen to engage with trusted partners in 2016 and beyond.

“In reality, the opportunities are there to almost double and triple,” Dodds explained.

“If you can articulate how it can improve the business, then there is money to be had.”

Through an innovative blend of products, services and consultancy, the streamlining of communications and operations of the Westcon-Comstor brand taps into the company’s new tagline ‘Delivering Results Together’ - which aims to further solidify the distributor, vendor and partner relationship across New Zealand.

“This statement is at the core of what we at Westcon-Comstor promise to do for our partners and the re-brand will strengthen our focus on fulfilling that promise to our partners.”

With businesses from the North to South Island keen to unleash the next wave of innovation, through the Westcon-Comstor brand, Kiwi partners can now help organisations tame the digital dragon.

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